Car-fender



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M. I'. FLYNN.

GA3 FENDER. Y No. 553,522.. Patented Jan'. 28 1896. @Q b 32 w x Q Q s R L 4 .niw

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CAIR FENDER.

No. 553,522. Patented Jan. Z8, 1896 T 1%( if' W/7"NES'SES:

/NVENTOH A 77'0HNEYS.

AN DREW RGRAHAM. PMOTO-LmiawAsmNGmN. D c.

ATENT Finca.

MICHAEL F. FLYNN, OF STAMFORD, CONNECTICUT.

CAR-FENDER.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters P Application filed April 3, 1895.

To all whom t may concern:

Be it known that I, MICHAEL F. FLYNN, of Stamford, in the county of Fairfield and State of Connecticut, have invented a new and useful Improvement in Car-Fenders, of which the following is a full, clear, and exact descripton.

My invention relates to an improvement in car fenders or guards, and especially to a lifeprotecting device for street-ears, locomotives, coaches, or other rolling-stock or vehicles, whether propelled by cable, electric, or other form of motors.

The object of the invention is to construct a fender normally carried in substantially a vertical position in front of the dashboard, and Which, when brought in contact with a person, animal or other object in the path of the car, will automatically assumea forwardly-inelined or substantially horizontal position, at the same time presenting abed for'the reception of the person or object struck.

A further object of the invention is to provide a means whereby while the fender is taking the operative position the said fender will automatically set in action devices for simultaneously applying the brakes and disengaging the trolley from the line-wire, or in the event the car is a cable-car releasing the grip, thus bringing the car to a standstill.

To these various ends and as a means for gaining other advantages in the matter of protecting life and limb onrailways the invention consists in the novel construction and combination of the several parts, as will be hereinafter fully set forth, and pointed out in the claims.

Reference Ais to be had to the accompanying drawings, forming a part of this specification, in which similar figures and letters of reference indicate corresponding parts in all the views.

Figure 1 is a perspective view of a trolleyoar having the improvements applied thereto, illustrating the fender as folded at the rear of the car and in working position at the front. Fig. 2 is a longitudinal vertical section, on an enlarged scale, taken through a portion of the body of the car and through the front and rear dash, and the fender in folded position at one end of the car, the fender being omitted at the opposite end. Fig. 3 is a vertical transverse section through atent No. 553,522, dated January 28, 1896.

Serial No. 544,286. (No model.)

'casing on the dash being partially in section.

Fig. 4t is a horizontal section taken substanially on the line 44E of Fig. 3. Fig. 5 is a horizontal section taken substantially on the line 5 5 of Fig. 3. Fig. G is a detail view of mechanism for operating underground trolley-arms, and Fig. is a detail view of a construction adapted for operating the grip of a cable-car from the fender.

In carrying out the invention rods 10 are projected vertically downward from each side of the hood A of the carin front of the dashboard B thereof, and these rods are made to enter tubes 1l, and adjacentto the said tubes guides 12 are formed upon the front face of the dash. The guides are adapted to support the fender proper, C, which is likewise attached to the tubes 1l;

The frame of the fender consists of two side pieces of telescopicconstruction, each consisting of a rod member 13 anda sleeve member 13a, in which the rod member may slide. The side bars of the fender-frame are connected at the bottom by means of a cross-bar let and at the top by a second cross -bar 15, the latter cross-bar being carried through the guides 12 and through lugs 15 formed upon the front of the dash near each side, and the top bar of the fender-frame is likewise carried through eyes formed in the lower ends of the tubes 11. Thus the upper end of the fender has a telescopic connection with the top portion of the car, and the side bars of the fendenframe are suitably spaced upon the end bar through the medium of washers 16, and washers similarly designated are secured upon the top cross-bar, one near each of the guides 12.

The fender-frame carries a bed 17, which may be of canvas or other fabric, or of woven wire or equivalent material, and the said bed at its side edges is attached in any approved manner to the sleeve members 13 of the fender-frame and at top and bottom of the corresponding bars of the frame, the bed being spread at the top by attaching it at the corners to the inner washers of the top eross-bar. The bed is preferably provided with openings 18, so placed that when the fender is in its upright position they will register with the couplings or buffer on the car.

Shifting-bars 19 are located at each side of the car and the said shifting-bars at their forthe platform of the car, looking forward, the' ward ends are pivotally 'attached to the sides IOO of the fender-frame, being journaled upon the lower cross-bar l-f, and the shifting-bars 19 extend beyond the front of the fender a predetermined distance and carry a roller 21, which is provided with a cushioned outer surface, the roller being parallel with the lower cross-bar of the fender-frame, and the said roller furthermore carries wheels 20, adapted to travel on the track when the fender is in working position. Each shifting-bar 19, near its connection with the fender-frame, is provided with a recess in its lower edge, forming a shoulder 22, as shown best in Fig. 1. These shifting -bars are carried inwardly beneath the car and through stirrups 23 projected downward from the bottom of the car, or an equivalent support, and the inner end of each shiftingbar 19 is usually secured to a chain or cable 2l, and the said chains or cables are attached to a shaft 25, located transversely beneath the car, between the forward and rear wheels, and the said shaft may be turned by a crank, since its outer ends are squared.

Then the fender is folded up in front of the dash, the cable 2l will be wound around the said shaft. 25 and the shaft is provided with a second cable, chain or link 29 attached to it, adapted to be wound on the shaft when the chain 2l is unwound, and the cable or link 2G is connected with the brake mechanism of the ear, being adapted to apply the brake when the said cable is wound on the said shaft.

In front of the stirrups the shifting-bar is provided with a loose sleeve 27 adapted for contact with the stirru ps and a fixed sleeve 27L placed farther to the front, a spring 28 being placed between these two sleeves, and when the fender is folded up these springs will be compressed by reason of the loose sleeves being forced forwardly by engagement with the stirrups 23. rlhese springs are adapted to give an initial forward movement to the fender, when it is free to move to work ing position, the further movement of the fender being accomplished by attaching a cable 29, or its equivalent, to the inner end of each shifting-bar 19, and these latter cables 29 are carried up\\f'ard at the corners of the car over suitable pulleys 30, and are provided with weights 3l, the weights tending constantly to exert pressure on the shifting-bars in a manner to force them outward.

A door D is located back of the fenderframe, being pivoted at its upper end to the front of the dash, and this door extends downward below the platform or bottom of the car, as shown in Figs. 1 and 2, and upon its front face at its lower end a transverse cushion is constructed on the said door.

Brackets are projected downward from beneath the platform of the car, one at each side, and these brackets near their lower ends support two transverse and parallel guidebars 34, and each bracket 33 has an auxiliary bracket secured upon its front face, the brackets being usually of angular form, as

shown in Fig. 4. The door is normally held inclined and removed a predetermined distance from the car at its lower end by means of rods 3G, secured'to the back of the doory nearits lower edge at each end, the rods being passed through suitable openings in. the main supporting-braekets 33, as is shown best in Fig. 2, a-nd a spring 37 is coiled around each rod between the door and the bracket. Thus the lower end of the door maybe forced inward; but the spring in reacting will force it outward to its normal position.

An elbow-lever is fulcrumed upon each auxiliary bracket 35, and the forward end of each elbow-lever is provided with a pin, which extends upward through staples 3l attached to the rear face of the door D, and the rear end of each angle-leveris attached to the extremities of a slide 38, as is best shown in Fig. l. A lever 39 is fulcrumed upon the inner face of the dash, the pivot of the lever being near its center, as shown in Fig. 3, and the lever is provided between its pivot and upper end with a tooth 40, the lower end of the lever being made to pass through the slide 3S and fit neatly therein, as shown in Fig. -l-. The tooth 40 of the lever 39, which is a shifting-lever, is adapted to engage teeth formed upon the periphery of a wheel al, and a chain 4:3 is secured to the periphery of the said wheel, as illustrated in Fig. 3, being adapted to support a drop-frame E. This frame is preferably made to consist of a vertical member -tl and side members 44, which unite at the vertical member and are spread apart at their lower ends, being carried downward and outward in opposite directions to the side portions of the ear, and the lower extremity of each member il of the frame Eis provided with a stirrup 1Mb, (best shown in Fig. 3,) the shifting-bars 19 being made to pass through these stirrups.

Supposing the fender to be in its working position, as shown in Fig. 1, to restore the fender to its folded position a crank-arm is applied to the shaft 25, and the shaft is turned in a manner to wind the chain 2i thereon, connected with the shifting side bars 19. These side bars will then be drawn inward and their springs 2S will be compressed, and the inward movement is continued until the shoulders on the shifting-bars are in a position to engage with the rear faces of the brackets and the ends of the drop-frame E, and it is evident that as the shifting-bars 1 9 are drawn inward the fender C will be raised, the tubes 11 traveling upon their guide-rods l0, as shown in Fig. 2, and when the fender is in its folded or full upper position its telescopic sides will have been reduced in length, causing the canvas or bed of the fender to fold, as is likewise shown in Fig. 2, and pro viding for a full-length bed being folded in front of the dash, not interfering in the least with the view of the motorman or gripman or the operation of necessary levers. Next the shaft upon which the toothed wheel 4l is ICO IIO

mounted is turned by means of a crank-arm or its equivalent, and the chain 43 wound thereon until the drop-frame E has been raised sufficiently to cause its stirrups to enter the recessed portions of the shifting-bars contacting with the shoulders 22, the drop-frame at that time supporting said bars together with the fender proper.

A casing or box 45 is formed upon the inner face of the dash containing the wheel 41 operating the drop-frame and the shiftinglever 39, which normally holds the drop-frame elevated by its engagement with a tooth on the said wheel, the box or casing being provided with an opening 4G in the top, through which the upper end of the lever extends, and an opening 47 in one side and a portion of the top, as shown in Fig. 3. Adjacent to the opening 47 a peripherally-grooved wheel 4S is mounted on the dash, carrying a cable 49, which at one end is provided with a weight 50, and adjacent to where the cable passes over the pulley a snap 51 is attached to the cable by means of a suitable length of chain or its equivalent, the said cable 49 being likewise passed over suitable guide-pulleys 54, as shown in Fig. 1.

A rope 52 from the trolley-arm 53 is adapted to be attached to the cable 49 through the medium of the snap 51, and the said cable 49 is carried beneath the car and secured to the shaft 25 nearest the opposite end of the car over which the trolley-wheel is suspended, it being understood that since the fender .is duplicated at each end of the car a windingshaft 25 is provided for each, and the cable 49, adapted to operate the trolley-arm an d located at one end of the car, as heretofore stated, is carried to the winding-shaft operating the fender at the opposite end of the car.

The operation of the fender is substantially as follows: The fender being in the folded position shown in Fig. 2, should a person be encountered in the path of the car, the front cushioned roller 21 of the fender proper will strike said person first, and the person will fall against the bed, thereby pressing inward the table or door D, and the table when traveling inward wi-ll operate the bell-crank lever 35iL and carry the slide 38 in a direction to remove the shifting-lever 39 fromthe teeth of the wheel 41. The wh eel may now revolve and the drop-frame E, through its own gravity, will drop downward, guided by the guidebars 34 between which it passes, and as the drop-frame falls it releases the shifting-bars 19, and the springs 28 of the latter act to immediately force the shifting-bars outward, carrying the bed ofthe fender to its lower position, aid ed by the weights 31 on the shifting-cables 29. As the shaft 25 is turned by the cables 24 of the shifting-bars 19 unwinding` therefrom, the cable 26 attached to the brake and the cable 49 connected with the trolley-arm will be wound on the same shaft in a reverse direction and the brakes will be applied and the trolley-arm carried from its conductor, as illustrated in Fig. 1, the breaking of the electric connection and the applying of the brakes being simultaneous with the movement of the fender in an outward direction. Vhen the shaft 25 is manipulated to draw in the fender the weight attached to the trolley-cable will take up the slack of the said cable to such an extent as to permit the trolley-arm to again contact with its conductor, and the brake-cable will likewise be unwound from the shaft.

In Fig. 6 I have shown a means for operating an underground trolley-arm from the winding-shaft 25. Under this construction one of the trolley-arms, 55, is of angular construction, the second -trolley-arm, 56, being pivoted to the angular arm at the junction of its members, and below the pivot the two arms are connected by links 57, the said links being pivotally attached to a block 58, having movement in a suitable guide 59, and the upper end of the angular trolley-arm is connected by a cable with the winding-shaft 25. Thus when the trolley-wheel of the angular arm is elevated from the underground wire the links 57 and block 58 will insure the elevation of the shorter arm, thus breaking the contact.

In Fig. 7 I have illustrated a cable 6l attached to the winding-shaft 25 and to a drum G2 on a shaft G3 adapted to operate the jaws of a cable-grip, the attachment being so made that when the shaft 25 is turned in one direction the winding of the cable 61 will cause the jaws of the grip to separate and release the cable.

It is evident that in the event anything should happen to the mechanism automatically operating the fender the fender may be instantly released by the motorman or gripman moving the shifting-lever 39 away from the toothed wheel 41.

Having thus described my invention, I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent- 1. A fender adapted to have sliding movement from a substantially vertical position in front of a car, rods extending from the upper portion of the car forming guides for the vertical movements of the fender, shifting arms connected with the fender and adapted to control the movement of the same, tension devices exerting outward tension upon the said shifting bars, and a releasing device operated by contact with the fender, as and for the purpose specified.

2. A fender adapted to have sliding movement from a substantially vertical position in front of a car, rods extending vertically at the front of the car and forming guides for the vertical movements of the fender, the said fender comprising a telescopic frame and a bed carried by the frame, shifting devices connected with the fender and operating the same, the said shifting devices having tension applied thereto in an outwardly direction,

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and a releasing device for the shifting devices, operated automatically bycontact with the fender, as and for the purpose specified.

3. A car fender adapted to have sliding movement to and from a substantially vertical position in front of a car, rods depending' from the upper portion of the car, a sliding connection between the fender and said rods, the said fender comprising a telescopic frame and a bed supported thereby, shifting bars connected with the lower portion of t-he fender, a cushioned roller located in advance of the lower end of the fender, tension devices exerting outward tension on the shifting bars, and a releasing device automatically carried out of engagement with the shifting bars by contact with the fender, as and for the purpose specified.

4. A car fender adapted for sliding connection with the front of a car, shifting arms connected with the lower end of the fender and adapted to move said end outward, tension devices connected with the shifting bars, exerting outward tension thereon, a weight having a flexible connection with a shifting bar'for moving the fender outward after the springs shall have caused the initial movement, and a winding shaft arranged tra-nsversely beneath the car and with which the shifting bars are connected, the said shaft being adapted to draw the fender inward and also to force it upward to a normal position against the car dash by drawing inward the said shifting bars, as and for the purpose set forth.

5. A car fender adapted for sliding connection with the front of a car, shifting arms connected with the lower end of the fender and adapted to move said end outward, tension devices connected with the shifting bars, exerting outward tension thereon, a winding shaft with which the shifting bars are connected, the said shaft being adapted to draw the fender inward by drawing inward the said shifting bars, a drop frame adapted as a support for the shifting bars, a lock connected with the said frame, holding it normally in an upper position, and a releasing device connected with the lock and operated by inward pressure on the said fender, as and for the purpose specified.

6. The combination, with a fender adapted for sliding movement at the front of a car, and a rotary shaft carried by the car of a shift-ing device having flexible connection with the shaft adapted to control the movement of the fender, and a detachable connection between the shifting device shaft and the trolley arm, whereby in one position of the fender the trolley arm willbe drawn downward and in another position permitted to ascend, as and for the purpose specified.

7. The combination with a car, a fender having a sliding movement relatively to the car and a shaft carried by the car, of a shifting device having connection with the shaft and adapted to control the movement of the fender, a connection between the shifting device shaft and a mechanism adapted to extend from the car to a propelling agent, the said mechanism being detached from the propelling agent when the fender is in one position and connected therewith when the fender is in another position, as and for the purpose specified.

S. The combination, with a car, a shaft mounted beneath the same, and a fender having sliding connection at its upper end with the dash of the car, of shifting arms connected with the lower portion of the fender and lillewise with the winding shaft, tension devices connected with the shifting arms and exerting outward tension thereon, alocking frame adapted normally for engagement with the shifting arms, and a releasing meehanisimsubstantially as described, connected with the locking frame and capable of operation by pressure on the fender, as and for the purpose specified.

9. The combination, with a car or like vehicles, a fender having sliding connection with the said car, and a shaft journaled beneath the ear, of a shifting device connected with the fender and adapted to normally force its lower end outward, tension devices connected with the shifting devices, and a connection between the shifting devices and the said shaft, a trolley arm, and a detachable cable connection between the said trolley arm and the aforesaid shaft, whereby when the shaft is rotated in a direction to shift the releasing device, the trolley cable willbe drawn downward to depress the trolley, and whereby the trolley arm is removed from its roller when the fender is placed in working position, as and for the purpose specified.

l0. In a car fender, the combination, with the dash-board thereof, a fender having sliding connection at its upper end with the said dash, a spring-controlled door located back of the fender, shifting bars connected with the fender and adapted to operate the same, and a locking frame normally in locking engagement with the shifting bars, of a lock connected with the locking frame, a releasing device engaging with the said lock, and a connection between the releasing device and the door, whereby when the latter is pressed inward the releasing device serves to release the lock, as and for the purpose specified.

1l. In a car fender, the combination, with a fender, of a shaft rotated by the movement of the fender, a brake mechanism, and a cable connection between the brake mechanism and shaft, whereby the brakes will be applied when the said shaft is revolved in a predetermined direction, as and for the purpose specified.

MICHAEL F. FLYNN.

lVitnesses:

J ULIUs B. CURTIS., Louis J. CURTIS.

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